Under the Rainbow

Under the Rainbow, the title of my new body of work, opens at Whitespace Gallery, Atlanta, GA in two weeks! I've been working on this new body since last summer, when I made this self titled piece the first week of June 2012. This piece was partly inspired by vintage postcards of Niagra falls that I found at an antique shop. For many months I was thinking about using more black in my work and these post card images spoke to me. I also found inspiration in the illustrations of Kay Nielsen and his use of black. In the last 10 months I've made 16 new paintings which will exhibit for the first time on April 5th at Whitespace Gallery, Atlanta, GA. Here is a sneak peak of some paintings. The first two are titled "Trophy 1+2" and the second is a detail shot of "Praying Mantis". These last few weeks I've been tinkering with wall hangings for the installation and here is an up close detail of one of the anthropomorphized veils that I have been creating. Photographer Karley Sullivan gave me some teeth that she cast and one of the pieces ended up in this sculpture. I've yet to come up with a name for it. I think it looks creepy but edible in a skittles kind of way. If you are in Atlanta anytime between April 5 - May 11, stop by the gallery to see the show. Or if you are from out of state and are interested in my work, you can contact me through Facebook or cloudanimal@gmail.com. I'll be posting the entire show online once it is documented mid April.

New work is under way!

I've been holing up in the studio over the holidays to continue working on a new body of paintings that will make their debut April 2013 at Whitespace Gallery.

My goal is to complete two paintings a week. Smaller paintings take about 20 hours or 3 days of work and some only take 2 days. We'll see how long the largest one will take...probably a month on and off. For now, I'm calling the new body of work "Under the Rainbow", but that is not official yet. It does pop into my mind every day however, and that is how I have been referring to the work. Posted are images of my process, during and complete.

Artist Talk and Reception this week at Trois Gallery

This Thursday, September 20th at 5pm, I will be giving an artist talk about my exhibition "Candy Coated" at Trois Gallery, Atlanta, GA. The show is a mini retrospective, so I think I will talk about several artistic endeavors that I have taken on within the past 10 years. There is a reception at 6pm immediately after the talk. I hope you can make it! Trois Gallery is on the SCAD Atlanta campus on Peachtree St. The exhibit is on the 4th floor of building A in the library.

Candy Coated at Trois Gallery, Atlanta GA

Currently I have an exhibition in Atlanta titled "Candy Coated" at Trois Gallery on the campus of SCAD Atlanta. The exhibition started earlier this Spring and was on view at Pinnacle Gallery in Savannah, GA. It is a collection of more than 4 bodies of work dating from 2007 to the present. The show will be up until late September. There is a reception with artist talk on Thursday, September 20th, time TBA. I hope you can stop and see the work.

Lashes for Ankles

Lashes for exposing your ankles, that is what you get if you're caught, when living in the capitol of Somalia. You're also not allowed to wear bras, listen to music or television or have gold teeth. I'm flabbergasted. Well there goes hip hop among other things. Another odd restriction is the banning of the delicious fried Samosa...the triangular shaped food item, as it too closely resembles the Christian trinity.
These new drawings are a base reaction to such extremes, which I find unacceptable, unlivable and unhealthy. I have a problem with extremes in general. Especially when personal beliefs are imposed on others or used as law. As a western artist, I purposely mirror the disconnect between myself and the oppression which happens around the world. I'm interested in drawing young girls, rebellious in nature, floating in a fantasy world where it is safe to live dangerously.

Hot in the City

Atlanta can get very hot, muggy and humid during the summer. The combination of old fish in the trash and 100F can make for a super stew of maggots and other gross things squirming in the garbage bin. Bugs also come inside, attracted by the A/C, to beat the heat. The other night I watched a big roach wiggle on his back and slowly die his natural death. I think the reason they are so scary is because they are so fast. Their sensory systems are highly acute and they also don't mind running their course right towards you or flying right into your face. I think they embody both fight and flight, not one or the other. They are also brown....I think if they were pink, turquoise or some other attractive color, they wouldn't be so scary. The next time I draw one, it will look prettier.

Mail Art in the Summertime

Just drew this today and shipped it off to Tempus projects in Florida for their mail art catalog and exhibit. Not sure what to call it. "Mystery Hug" comes to mind. This is a 7"x7" drawing of my new model Maggie V.